Mossberg Bolt Action Shotguns: Weird never felt so good (VIDEO)

It looks like a rifle large enough to part a meteor, sink a battleship, or down a MIG with one shot. The reason is, it’s actually a shotgun, which explains the huge barrel but not the action. Yes, it has a bolt-action, and Mossberg has been the master of these oddball guns for decades.

Why a bolt-action shotgun?

Untold thousands of Gew 98 German Mausers were re-purposed after WWI. Many were converted into early bolt action shotguns.

In the 19th Century, most shotguns were break action single or double barrel type jobs. Towards the end that century the first pump and lever-action, repeaters came on the market but the newest rifle designs of the early 1900s were bolt-action rifles with detachable box magazines. After World War 1, several Model Gew 98 German Mausers were converted to fire shotgun shells and these became seen as a very modern idea for a very modern age. Oscar Mossberg, a shrewd engineer and businessman, decided to jump on this concept with both feet and introduce a new shotgun designed from the ground-up as a bolt-action.

The bolt action Mossbergs were all quite simple in design… not unlike any bolt action long gun.

Exploded parts list on early model Mossberg bolt action shotgun.

Starting in the early 1930s, he came up with his prototype bolt action shotguns. The gun, fundamentally just a large chambered smoothbore rifle with a turn bolt action set into a one-piece stock, was very simple. In all it contained just over 40 parts and could be made cheaply since the steel of the barrel could be soft due to the low pressures of shotgun shells. Unlike many early pump-action guns that could bind up, the bolt provided almost no chance of failure to feed or eject. Overall, the new design could be a solid challenger during the Great Depression against the more expensive Winchester Model 12 and the Remington 31 pump guns.

Early models

Mossberg’s original 1930s advertisement announcing the first bolt action shotguns.

The first bolt action Mossberg to hit the market was the 1933-era .410 Model G Bolt Action Repeater. This four shot rabbit and squirrel gun weighed but 5.5-pounds and used a 26-inch barrel that worked with pretty swag chrome plated bolt lever and trigger. This gun spawned the Model 70 (no relation to Winchester’s rifle of the same designation), a handy little 4.75-pound takedown single shot that could be broken down into two short pieces, each about two feet long, for transport.

By 1939 the same design had been produced in 20-gauge as the Model 75. By the start of World War Two in 1941, there were nearly a dozen models and subvariants of the .410 and 20-gauge bolt gun in Mossberg’s catalog. Wartime production of military weapons halted the line and killed the concept for the rest of the decade.

Mossberg Model 75 advertisement.

Mossberg Model 75 20-gauge bolt action shotgun.

Post-war rebirth

A 1960s Model 390 advertisement detailing C-Lect-Choke.

After World War 2, thousands of military surplus Winchester, Remington, Ithaca and Stevens pump-action shotguns were glutting the civilian market. These guns, shed by a shrinking military that did not need them to fight Germans, Japanese, or Italians, swamped the gun shelves for a generation. Trying to reenter the fray of peacetime scatterguns for the hunting market, Mossberg redesigned their whole line of bolt-action guns, going from double digit model numbers (e.g. 73, 65, 85) to triple digit numbers (173, 183). These could be considered the 2nd Gen of OFM’s bolt-action shotguns.

Many of the 300 series OFM bolt guns used the C-LECT-CHOKE. This choke was attached to the barrel and could be adjusted from modified to full.

For a time Mossberg tried to move away from their legacy designs and get into the competition for pump action guns. In fact, their Model 200 slide action, introduced in 1955, was the company’s first venture into a scattergun that wasn’t a bolt action. The thing is, people still remembered the pre-war bolt guns, which had a good reputation among hunters, and asked the company for more. This kept their Model .410-gauge Model 183s and 20-gauge Model 185s in production throughout the Fifties and Sixties. To further expand the line and take advantage of the popularity of the 16-gauge (which was the most popular shotgun caliber in the country for about 30 years), they introduced the Model 190 in 16-gauge and then the Model 195 in 12 at the same time.

Mossberg Model 190 bolt action shotgun in 16-gauge.

Mossberg Model 190, close up of bolt.

Overall, these Mossberg bolt guns were country simple, priced right, and effective. Other ‘value’ makers such as Marlin Firearms even jumped on the bolt shotgun bandwagon in the 1950s with their Model 55 series. They had to get in line behind Stevens and Harrington and Richardson who had been following Mossberg’s bolt-action guns with their own since the 30s.

Several Mossy bolt guns.

Move into the modern age

Mossberg C-Lect-Chokes for bolt-action shotguns.

Adding factory recoil pads, variable C-Lect-Chokes attached to the muzzle, cross bolt safeties, and sling swivels, Mossberg took their 100-series guns and upgraded the line in the late 1960s to the new Model 385/390/395 designations. By 1974, the company stopped making 16-gauges, the first victim of yesteryear. I myself owned a 12-gauge M395K as a kid 20 years ago and (stupidly) decided to bang out some Olin 12-gauge rescue flares out of it—which didn’t work too well. Needless to say, do not shoot flares out of a regular shotgun. Moreover, do not show my dad this article.

By the 1980s, these morphed into the Models 585/595 with stretched 3-inch chambers and improved bolts.

The Mossberg 695 was the end of the line for their bolt action shotguns.

The last and most modern ‘5th Generation’ of Mossberg bolt action was the Model 695. These guns have been around since 1995 but were quietly discontinued in 2003, ending the exactly 70-year run of bolt shotguns for OFM. Instead of inexpensive guns meant for the everyman, these 695s were niche shotguns. One model was a rifled slug gun with a 22″ fully rifled ported barrel, adjustable fiber optic sights, and Weaver scope bases. The other was a gobbler gun equipped with a camo synthetic stock and a 22′ Accu-choke barrel with extra-full turkey tube to reach out and make those pinpoint shots on Mr. Tom.

The 695 slugger is still very well regarded among 12-gauge slug hunters.

Owning one

Many Mossberg bolt action shotguns were sold with trap shooting systems. This took the form of a simple clay thrower attached to the barrel.

The thousands of Mossberg bolt-action shotguns produced between 1933-1995 can be bought for a song. Fortunately (or unfortunately as the case may be) these older guns, while vintage in many cases, just aren’t that collectable. Both Peterson and Fjestad list all of the bolt action Mossbergs (except for the newer Model 695) at between $45-$125 depending on condition. Keep in mind that this price is for working models. While spare parts are around through Numrich and others, be shy of guns without functional magazines as they usually run $40-ish and can seem like a ‘no-brainer’ purchase. Still if you come across one that works at a good price and need a swamp gun or boat gun that you aren’t afraid if it gets a little rusty, crusty, or lost, you would be hard pressed not to give it a shot (pun intended).

Mossberg bolt action rifles, shown here in .410, are a common sight throughout the country in a plethora of calibers.

When getting into a more modern 695, be aware that there was a voluntary recall on some of these guns due to a problem with the bolt. The 695s under recall were produced in 1995 and 1996, with serial numbers ranging from M000101 to M015304. Used 695s pop up in the $275 range with both slugsters and Tom callers eagerly seeking them out.

Perhaps bolts were better left on rifles, but don’t tell that to those who own one of these ‘old reliables’. I still have mine. And I know better than to shoot flares out of it now.

Post your Comments

I had one and it had a small grove on the receiver that was a rear sight. It was very accurate for slugs. No problem taking ground hogs out to 60 yards. Mine cocked on the downward motion of the bolt closing and a small key in the bolt sheared and caused to gun to not fully cock. That lead to a dangerous situation of the gun firing on its own without warning even when the safety was on. It did it when the bolt was less than half closed on a 3 inch shell and the shell blew apart and up into my face. I saw stars and was barely able to stay on my feet. No serious injuries but very lucky I wear glasses. It took several minutes to get my senses back and longer to get my hearing back. A gun smith fixed it cheap. The pin probably sheared due to working the bolt very fast and hard when duck hunting that day. I could work that bolt as almost as fast as some people can cycle a pump gun. . It still should not do that. Otherwise it was a great gun. I wish I still had it. I didn't have any real issues with the poly choke clogging up with plastic as some people have said. I didn't shoot trap so I probably didn't go through as many shells as some people might have. Just for hunting. It was nice being to able to adjust the choke in seconds with just a quick twist.

That's a neat story. You're brave to re-use it after that. Bolt shotguns do seem odd, but maybe for someone familiar with a similar rifle it would point the same way, and a positive attribute is that the stock is rigid.

If anyone has a Wards Western Field Model 215 A, (they say its a Mossberg 85), could you give me a shout. Working on one that the magazine has been rigged to stay in. Don't know if I'm missing parts, or if something is off the magazine itself. Pictures would be great. Thanks.

One more thing for laughs. when I was about 9or10 I was home alone poking around stuff and i found where my dad hid his deer slugs for the 190-16ga. I took 1 and shot it from the back porch into the woods. Unlike my daisy bb gun it shook me up and i peed my pants. I put it away and never did that again.

It has only been recently that we have been able to use a rifle to hunt big game in the Southern Tier of NY State. My mainstay has always been my Model 316 BA 16 gauge shot from Western Auto made by Mossberg. This shotgun has bagged me several deer over the years and I regard it as one of my most reliable firearms.

These shot guns are like women unpredictable. I have my fathers 190 -16ga. and my first gun 190 kb. I would like to have a rifled barrel on the 190kb-16ga. if they made one for it or if someone has one for it. Just for laugh's I took the 190bk to a turkey shoot ,got laughed at, and took two turkeys home.

my dads 20 ga. mossberg bolt threw the tightest pattern of any shotgun ive ever owned. it was awesome on smallgame as a kid i never missed, cant hit the broad side of a barn now, with all my expensive toys..

My 77 year old dad bought a Mossburg Model 190 16ga bolt action with the modified choke in the early 50's. He passed it on to me and I have given it to my 18 year old son. It truly is an awesome gun and a real conversation piece among friends. I love hearing my dad talk about being a kid hunting with this gun.

I bought a Revelation Model 316 BA 16 gauge shot from Western Auto some 50 years ago. Thru all my moves I have carried it with me, stuck it in the back of a closet and forgot about it. I know it was made by Mossberg, but that is about all I have been able to find out. I can find alot of info on other models, but nothing about Model 316 BA. The gun is a joy to shoot. In my younger days it killed alot of squirrels, but it hasn't been fired in 20 years or so. Does anyone know anything else about this model, or why nothing seems to be published about a Model 316 BA.

I just saw a 12ga listed in the local newspaper classifieds. I have a few rifles and shotguns but some how I never heard of bolt action shotguns. I Googled and found this article. The seller is asking $125 but doesn't say what kind of condition it is in. What is the capacity of the magazine? I am thinking of buying it to add to my collection to have something different at the range.

My Dad bought a 20ga. for my Mom. and cut a whole bunch off the butt stock and put on a real thick pad on it for her. It still kicked the heck out of this little lady. My older brother and I both learned to hunt quail & pheasant with it. It was a great learning tool because we knew that we weren't apt to get off a second shot on a covey break. And it took a really good aim to bring down a cock pheasant. Dad was a great hunter/shot and I on a couple of occasions when I out shot the old man. Boy was I proud. I have since went through a series of pumps and autos. and wasted too many shells just because they were there. I have gone back to an over/under and get more birds per rounds. It took almost forty years to learn this lesson. I still have the old Mossy and wish I had a young man who wanted to learn to hunt.

Back in the early 1980's , my uncle loaned me his bolt action Mossberg shotgun to hunt with. It was stamped as a 410 but he told me it was a 20 gauge. I reluctantly loaded a 20 gauge shell and if I remember right, I closed my eyes when I pulled the trigger, just knowing it was going to blow up in my face. It shot like a dream, it had a at the time what I called a reducer and man it would hold a tight pattern. I killed many gray squirrels with this amazing gun. I tried to buy the gun from him but he wanted to hang on to it. I still to this day wonder if the gun was engraved wrong at the factory or if it was bored out before my uncle purchased it. If anyone has any information on this , I would really be interested in hearing from you. mustangman330@yahoo.com

It is impossible to bore out a .410 bore to accommodate a 20 gauge shell due to actual size difference. It would take one hell of a bull bbl to do such and no company would manufacture such out of practicality. If it shoots 20 gauge and is stamped .410, you have a rare factory error that I have never heard of before.

its not bored out man its a factory mis-stamp, I also have one. Mine I got free from cleaning out a barn/shed for a woman who deceased hubby used to rebuild his own guns. the only way you are going to get a shotgun or a rifle that shoots multi size loads is by getting something like the single shot remmy/Bakail break open, I also had one of those too and have .410, 20,12,16, gauges and also have 30-06,308, 6mm barrels for only takes about 10 seconds to swap between barrels, and lol be prepared cause it kicks harder than a mule. jerry is correct it is a very rare thing and as far as research goes I have not been able to find anything on this, maybe I am looking in the wrong place or its actually unheard of. yours is the second one in my life that I have heard of this.

where does one actually buy guns at the prices quoted? everywhere but CA I wager. Anything that fires anything safely and legally goes for $100 at least. Father in law has a 20ga and local prices (and offers) were well over 200 for a not perfect example.